NCAAs quarterfinal Cornell vs. BU

[Tom Lento]

Count me in the 1000% proud camp.  It would have been so easy for this team to mail it in - they had every excuse in the world NOT to put in the extra effort it must have taken to gel late Feb & March with a completely different lineup than they had a month before.  Their record was already a millstone around their necks - by the time everyone got healthy, it was clear we were going on the road for the ECAC playoffs, with a run to Lake Placid very unlikely.  Just let the season run out and move on with life.

But they didn't take that path - they did not let the situation control their intensity.  They buckled down and poured their hearts into every shift, steamrolling Colgate on the road, never giving up against Q, controlling Clarkson, taking down the #1 team in the polls, and taking arguably the most skilled team in the country to OT.

I could not be prouder - which is exactly why it hurts so much.  If losing didn't hurt, then winning wouldn't be special, and that's not a life I choose to live.  I want the highs, so I take the lows.  You cannot have one without the other.

Let's Go Red.

In the press conference after the ECAC final Schafer talked about how the team decided to go training camp mode as they got close to full strength in February instead of doing the usual taper, and how hard that was for them in terms of both scheduling and physical workload. They went for it, they worked for it, and it paid off big.

They're conference champions and they played a tremendous NCAA tournament, and as the pain of this loss fades I'm sure earning that title will be incredibly satisfying after such a challenging and disappointing regular season.

[BearLover]

I think people need to separate our incredible run the past few weeks from how devastating of a loss today was. Yes, I'm extremely proud of this team and of this program and of Schafer. Yes, this was an amazing few weeks. But we were in OT of the regional final. We are in this position precious few times, and today things didn't go our way, yet again. 1-10 in regional finals is horrifically unlucky; even if we were 40% to win each game (which is low) we should have 4 or 5 frozen fours and probably a national championship under Schafer.

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen. I've had the whole year to celebrate Schafer, and days and weeks to celebrate our run. To lose in OT to BU, with the frozen four on the line, in the same game for the third year in a row, in our coach's final season, is brutal. If your immediately reaction to our season ending is to write how grateful you are, I think that's a coping mechanism. Which is fine! I have my own coping mechanism, which is my usual Charlie Brown act. Trosky has his, which is putting words in people's mouths and calling them a POS. Everyone copes in their own way.

But just because I bemoan how horrifically bad this loss was doesn't mean I don't appreciate Schafer or this program. If you seriously think that, you're absolutely nuts. Two things can be true: (1) Schafer had a great career, and (2) this was the single biggest opportunity, and single most devastating loss, in my 17 years as a die-hard Cornell hockey fan.

[fastforward]

Honestly, I don't give a Flying F--- that we haven't won a national championship or made it back to a Frozen Four in decades. I didn't even know what the Frozen Four was 5 years ago.  I love watching Cornell hockey. Hard to think of a more fun place to be than Lynah Rink. The minute I hear "Good evening hockey fans" I get happy.  Ditto for listening to Grady and Tim on ESPN.

I don't hope for a whole bunch of first-round hot-shot draft picks. I like that we don't accept 17 transfers or graduate students. I don't wish for Cornell to be able to bend their athletic academic standards one bit. I like our identity just as it is: true student-athletes at a top university that play like a TEAM. That means we win less, so what. It just that much more fun when we do beat  those other types of teams.

The team's previous 3 games were as awesome as a fan could ask for. The team played their heart out against BU. What an incredible story this season has been. I'm grateful for it all.

LGR

I'm totally in agreement with everything you just said.

Cornell hockey, to me, is a way of life.
The guys truly put everything into it, morning, noon and night, and weekends too.

I respect their dedication and commitment.

I will be forever grateful and proud.

[fastforward]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

[stereax]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

seconding crochet! I used to mess around with crochet while watching NHL games - a hobby I should get back to, tbh - and it's super rewarding to make little projects

[pfibiger]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

Bearlover, I raised sea levels .000001" to make you this. I hope you find no enjoyment in its beauty and may your glass always stay half empty.

[ER]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

Can you guys all just fucking quit it? If he wants to describe it as brutal (which emotionally, is accurate) why is that so triggering? It's a forum. People can express their opinions and feelings freely. No one's feelings are more or less valid than the next. If you don't like someone's' comment, just keep scrolling. But I've had about enough of the quibbling. Y'all need to grow up.

[Big Dingus]

I think Bearlover is the worst poster ever to sign up for this forum - but unfortunately he is right.

The string of losses in this game is depressing and the fact that we could not just get the ONE bounce to get us over the hump is horrible. In 10 games, not once could anything go our way to go to the frozen four. Not luck, nothing. That's horrible and it is the same thing every year.

[ER]

It really is a mystery.

[BearLover]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

Wow, some of this stuff on this forum seriously reads like it came from people who have never watched sports before. Yes, losing in the regional final in OT when your team hasn't been to the frozen four since 2003 is 1000x more brutal than losing 8-3 in the opening round. Are you nuts?

Also, why do you even care what I think? I'm just expressing my own opinion, I'm not attacking anybody. Get a grip, dude, not everyone is a happy-go-lucky optimist who smiles serenely after Cornell loses in OT in the regional final to its arch rival to end the career of its coach. I post the most benign shit ever and without fail it triggers a massive freakout. This is the softest and most cringe sports forum in the history of the internet, you all need to grow up.

[Bahnstorm]

If nothing else this loss and what it meant for Cornell hockey should reinvigorate the "screw BU" cheer, may the pep band oblige.

[Trotsky]

If nothing else this loss and what it meant for Cornell hockey should reinvigorate the "screw BU" cheer, may the pep band oblige.

This. They are a Very Real Enemy again after the 2 QF knock outs and Red Hot Hockey; more relevant at the moment than Harvard and indeed anyone but Q and Clarkson.

I came to hockey sentience with the rivalry, and am so glad to see it alive and well.

[Trotsky]

So, for people who went, what did you think of Toledo?  A Michigander I know said "we fought Ohio for it and they lost."

[Chris '03]

And so I don't really care to celebrate our run and Schafer's career immediately following one of the most brutal losses I have ever seen.
.

Dude, are you nuts??
BU killed Ohio State 8-3
We lost in OT
Brutal loss?
No way was this a brutal loss
I think you should get a hobby - knitting or crochet might be good therapy

Wow, some of this stuff on this forum seriously reads like it came from people who have never watched sports before. Yes, losing in the regional final in OT when your team hasn't been to the frozen four since 2003 is 1000x more brutal than losing 8-3 in the opening round. Are you nuts?

Also, why do you even care what I think? I'm just expressing my own opinion, I'm not attacking anybody. Get a grip, dude, not everyone is a happy-go-lucky optimist who smiles serenely after Cornell loses in OT in the regional final to its arch rival to end the career of its coach. I post the most benign shit ever and without fail it triggers a massive freakout. This is the softest and most cringe sports forum in the history of the internet, you all need to grow up.

I've mostly stayed out of this never-ending nonsense but I'm tired of it.

This isn't a sports forum in the sense of a bunch of anonymous semi-literate know it alls yelling at each other online to feel better about themselves. There are plenty of places online for that. I stopped spending any time there years ago.

Many of the long time posters here go back to the beginning of elf and the chdf before that and also know each other offline. For many, the common thread is Cornell hockey.  In 2002, I went from dag14's class on the ag quad to Columbus to watch the season opener (with turkeybone and Josh 99). On the drive I passed Jim Hyla. Scersk97 was at the game. I remember jtw at placid in 2002 working out the pairwise in the days we'll before smart phones. I met ugarte at a lax playoff game with richh. Dbilmes is a fixture at games in CT. I watched plenty of games with ER when we were in school at the same time. The list goes on.

Everyone here loves Cornell and Cornell hockey. Everyone here understands the pain of being teased into believing and then getting punched in the gut. Nobody is looking for the tone of a typical sports message board.  Nobody is looking for innuendo or suggestions about all the low hanging fruit one perceives being missed. Or constant needling and ad hominem assault. I don't care if people are positive or negative. Talk about the games. Be critical of decisions on the ice. Lament ivy rules and covid changes.  But check the needless combativeness and childish name calling at the door. And remember that we're talking about students playing a game.  

For me at least, Cornell hockey is a refuge from the world burning all around us. If I want to be surrounded by gratuitous combativeness, I've got plenty of options.

[Trotsky]

For me at least, Cornell hockey is a refuge from the world burning all around us. If I want to be surrounded by gratuitous combativeness, I've got plenty of options.

We said.  We must all hang together or we shall surely hang separately.